What is our primary use case?
We are using the latest version of ManageEngine Applications Manager. We recently updated it. We are monitoring the performance of the GMR service using the Application Manager. We can collect the JVM parameters and that helps us to analyze the heat memory without even going into the missions or the servers. We can also monitor what other processes are running and check which one is occupying more memory. And we can also set the alarms, automatic alarms like email alerts, if something crosses a threshold. We monitor 1200 users and 25 servers with the Applications Manager.
How has it helped my organization?
Whenever there is an issue, the DevOps team in my organization would have to log into the server, analyze the parameter, and attempt to get the historical data. But, it was difficult.ManageEngine Applications Manager maintains the historical data and it's easy for us to analyze the trends and patterns and fix them accordingly. So it makes our job easier. The time we spend on analyzing the issue has come down drastically.
What is most valuable?
I know that it has more than 30 monitoring features for particular services. I can monitor individual GMOs. I can monitor my own individually. Applications Manager has a service to monitor each and every specific feature in a server. These features are not available in other tools. With other monitoring tools, it will monitor the entire server, but not the applications that are running in it. Applications Manager specializes in monitoring the applications also along with several other parameters. That is why we use Applications Manager.
What needs improvement?
I would say that the implementation of ManageEngine Applications Manager is too detailed. You need some training to effectually use it. For a new person who is using it, he will find the features are all a bit overwhelming. I would suggest that improvement for this product would be to make it easier to use. They could probably rearrange the UI so that it would be easy for people who are new to the Application Manager to configure things.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using ManageEngine Applications Manager for almost a year now.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The product stability is good. We haven't had any issues.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
There is an option for scalability but we haven't tried using it yet. So right now, we are managing only 25 servers and this single machine is capable of doing it. And there are options to add more than a thousand monitors, but we haven't required it. So, I'm not able to comment on that.
How are customer service and support?
We opened a technical support ticket we used on the initial setup date and the response was very quick. They have very good technical support. For example, we couldn't connect one of the missions in Azure cloud and we raised a ticket with them. They asked us to send us some details from the machine. They helped us out by giving us the link to configure the Azure missions.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We used an Android open-source solution for some time. But, it didn't have the deeper analysis that Applications Manager has.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of ManageEngine Applications Manager is straightforward. However, there are many details. The deployment takes less than two hours. It's a single server deployment and we have a backup configuration. So if there is some issue we can get the other server up in another machine and restore the configuration. It only required one person to deploy.
What about the implementation team?
We did the implementation in-house. We had a lot of frustration and there is a dedicated support team that we could inquire about a specific problem. We opened a technical support ticket we used to write on the initial date if we don't start somewhere and the response is quite quick.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The licensing costs for ManageEngine Applications Manager are around $1,200 per year. For additional monitors, you have to pay extra.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We tried Dynatrace for monitoring, but the solution was quite costly compared to ManageEngine's Application Manager. But from a purely business point of view, Dynatrace is also a good tool and we found both satisfies our requirements.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate ManageEngine Applications Manager a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
